R.I.P. Edward Herrmann
December 31, 2014 1:47 PM Subscribe
Tony and Emmy winning actor Edward Herrmann, who is perhaps best known for his role as Lorelai's father in "Gilmore Girls", has passed away from brain cancer at the age of 71. His recent role as the voice of Franklin Roosevelt in Ken Burns' documentary "The Roosevelts" ironically brought him full circle to his breakout portrayal of FDR in the miniseries "Eleanor and Franklin" nearly forty years ago.
I enjoyed this 2012 interview with Herrmann from the AV Club's Random Roles series. Hits many of the highlights of a great career.
posted by RogerB at 1:56 PM on December 31, 2014 [5 favorites]
posted by RogerB at 1:56 PM on December 31, 2014 [5 favorites]
Suckity suck suck.
We'll miss you, Richard Gilmore.
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posted by Kitteh at 1:56 PM on December 31, 2014 [4 favorites]
We'll miss you, Richard Gilmore.
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posted by Kitteh at 1:56 PM on December 31, 2014 [4 favorites]
Oh no! He was one of those "that guys" who showed up everywhere!
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posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 2:00 PM on December 31, 2014
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posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 2:00 PM on December 31, 2014
I remember him for his last line "I can't" from MASH episode Heal Thyself.
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posted by hal9k at 2:01 PM on December 31, 2014 [6 favorites]
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posted by hal9k at 2:01 PM on December 31, 2014 [6 favorites]
Oh man, too young, and also, feck cancer.
Yet another of the talents who grew up in my state (MI). I've watched his work from "Eleanor and Franklin" right on through "The Gilmore Girls" and the "Roosevelts."
posted by NorthernLite at 2:05 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
Yet another of the talents who grew up in my state (MI). I've watched his work from "Eleanor and Franklin" right on through "The Gilmore Girls" and the "Roosevelts."
posted by NorthernLite at 2:05 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
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I saw him in many character parts in my childhood (and in the Paper Chase movie playing a college student), and refuse to believe he was 71.
And who can forget his multiply eponymous* role as Herman Munster in the Munsters TV movie?
*I know, eponyhysterical...
posted by randomkeystrike at 2:06 PM on December 31, 2014 [3 favorites]
I saw him in many character parts in my childhood (and in the Paper Chase movie playing a college student), and refuse to believe he was 71.
And who can forget his multiply eponymous* role as Herman Munster in the Munsters TV movie?
*I know, eponyhysterical...
posted by randomkeystrike at 2:06 PM on December 31, 2014 [3 favorites]
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posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 2:07 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 2:07 PM on December 31, 2014
Welcome to Heaven, special appearance by Edward Herrmann.
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posted by Etrigan at 2:07 PM on December 31, 2014 [10 favorites]
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posted by Etrigan at 2:07 PM on December 31, 2014 [10 favorites]
I remember him for his last line "I can't" from MASH episode Heal Thyself.
Thanks for that, hal9k. I had considered including that in the post. One hell of an episode with a devastating ending, and most of that can be attributed to his performance.
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 2:16 PM on December 31, 2014 [2 favorites]
Thanks for that, hal9k. I had considered including that in the post. One hell of an episode with a devastating ending, and most of that can be attributed to his performance.
posted by AlonzoMosleyFBI at 2:16 PM on December 31, 2014 [2 favorites]
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I always got a kick out of Lorelei's dad being a vampire. Great actor, I'll miss seeing his work.
posted by arcticseal at 2:21 PM on December 31, 2014 [3 favorites]
I always got a kick out of Lorelei's dad being a vampire. Great actor, I'll miss seeing his work.
posted by arcticseal at 2:21 PM on December 31, 2014 [3 favorites]
Honestly, Richard, on New Year's Eve?
(to be read in Emily Gilmore's voice)
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posted by bibliowench at 2:23 PM on December 31, 2014 [42 favorites]
(to be read in Emily Gilmore's voice)
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posted by bibliowench at 2:23 PM on December 31, 2014 [42 favorites]
Aw... this is too bad. He was always one of my favorites. Years ago he was on some PBS show where they fixed up an old car he owned. Some massive and beautiful thing from the 30's or so. It somehow seemed appropriate that he would own such a machine.
posted by freakazoid at 2:27 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by freakazoid at 2:27 PM on December 31, 2014
For tonight, and tonight only, my name is Bill.
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posted by roomthreeseventeen at 2:32 PM on December 31, 2014 [4 favorites]
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posted by roomthreeseventeen at 2:32 PM on December 31, 2014 [4 favorites]
I adored him in Lost Boys. He was so perfect -- the floppy hair and oversized sportcoat. It took me a while to connect him to Richard Gilmore!
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posted by mochapickle at 2:34 PM on December 31, 2014
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posted by mochapickle at 2:34 PM on December 31, 2014
Sad news indeed. It hits me especially hard since all I've done the past few weeks is watch Gilmore Girls from the start. I always enjoy a good Richard scene...just saw episode in season three where Emily and Richard think Lorelai is joking about backpacking across Europe. Such fantastic comedic timing!
posted by The Hyacinth Girl at 2:39 PM on December 31, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by The Hyacinth Girl at 2:39 PM on December 31, 2014 [3 favorites]
I was trying to think of where I remember him from, but it only hit me when I checked IMDB: he was Father McCabe on St. Elsewhere.
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posted by Zonker at 2:45 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by Zonker at 2:45 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
He was terrific as Hearst in The Cat's Meow.
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posted by tzikeh at 2:51 PM on December 31, 2014 [4 favorites]
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posted by tzikeh at 2:51 PM on December 31, 2014 [4 favorites]
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He was also fun as a recurring guest on the Good Wife, as an extremely serious/pessimistic lawyer.
posted by Zephyrial at 2:59 PM on December 31, 2014
He was also fun as a recurring guest on the Good Wife, as an extremely serious/pessimistic lawyer.
posted by Zephyrial at 2:59 PM on December 31, 2014
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posted by mr. manager at 3:23 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by mr. manager at 3:23 PM on December 31, 2014
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I thought he was great in The Purple Rose of Cairo .
posted by dannyboybell at 3:24 PM on December 31, 2014
I thought he was great in The Purple Rose of Cairo .
posted by dannyboybell at 3:24 PM on December 31, 2014
Aw, shit. I loved him in nearly everything I saw him in. He's one of those actors whose presence improve everything they do. I first remember him as FDR in Annie. And when I heard his voice in the Roosevelts documentary, I got a big kick out of it.
Damn.
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posted by grubi at 3:34 PM on December 31, 2014
Damn.
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posted by grubi at 3:34 PM on December 31, 2014
Rory's grandpa has left Hartford for the last time.
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posted by NedKoppel at 3:54 PM on December 31, 2014
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posted by NedKoppel at 3:54 PM on December 31, 2014
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posted by Sheydem-tants at 3:59 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by Sheydem-tants at 3:59 PM on December 31, 2014
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I loved how on Gilmore Girls he was always listed in the cast as "Special Appearance by Edward Herrmann" even though he was in most episodes. He didn't appear any less than any other character (outside the Lorelais themselves) but it was still special.
posted by downtohisturtles at 4:14 PM on December 31, 2014 [2 favorites]
I loved how on Gilmore Girls he was always listed in the cast as "Special Appearance by Edward Herrmann" even though he was in most episodes. He didn't appear any less than any other character (outside the Lorelais themselves) but it was still special.
posted by downtohisturtles at 4:14 PM on December 31, 2014 [2 favorites]
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posted by theseldomseenkid at 4:36 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by theseldomseenkid at 4:36 PM on December 31, 2014
He was in everything, it seems. He was even in "North Avenue Irregulars," a wacky chase-antics-with-everybody-including-the-kitchen-sink movie from '79 which I saw far too many times to admit to anybody.
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 5:16 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 5:16 PM on December 31, 2014
I was just looking him up the other day. I've been watching Gilmore Girls for the first time and he is such a wonderful character on that show.
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posted by yaymukund at 5:54 PM on December 31, 2014
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posted by yaymukund at 5:54 PM on December 31, 2014
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Wasn't he also the guy who was in Timothy Bottom's study group in the Paper Chase?
posted by Renoroc at 6:59 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
Wasn't he also the guy who was in Timothy Bottom's study group in the Paper Chase?
posted by Renoroc at 6:59 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
Playing Roosevelt twice is not ironic
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posted by Saxon Kane at 8:22 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by Saxon Kane at 8:22 PM on December 31, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by lucy.jakobs at 8:41 PM on December 31, 2014
posted by lucy.jakobs at 8:41 PM on December 31, 2014
"Brain cancer." *shivers*
I remember him best from M*A*S*H, as Ezra Styles in The Great Waldo Pepper, and from A Little Sex. Great actor.
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posted by bryon at 10:46 PM on December 31, 2014
I remember him best from M*A*S*H, as Ezra Styles in The Great Waldo Pepper, and from A Little Sex. Great actor.
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posted by bryon at 10:46 PM on December 31, 2014
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Although he will be Richard Gilmore to me now and always, for many decades I thought of him as Fred Friendly to Daniel J. Travanti's Edward R. Murrow. Oh, how I will miss that voice.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:04 AM on January 1, 2015
Although he will be Richard Gilmore to me now and always, for many decades I thought of him as Fred Friendly to Daniel J. Travanti's Edward R. Murrow. Oh, how I will miss that voice.
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 12:04 AM on January 1, 2015
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posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 1:18 AM on January 1, 2015
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 1:18 AM on January 1, 2015
I really like this his stepson was named Rory.
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posted by minsies at 4:32 AM on January 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
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posted by minsies at 4:32 AM on January 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
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posted by hydropsyche at 7:44 AM on January 1, 2015
posted by hydropsyche at 7:44 AM on January 1, 2015
I too first saw his performance in that M*A*S*H episode and enjoyed every time I saw one of his later roles, particularly in The Lost Boys and the previous movie of Annie. He made something of a minor career just playing FDR. He will be missed.
posted by Gelatin at 9:26 AM on January 1, 2015
posted by Gelatin at 9:26 AM on January 1, 2015
Playing Roosevelt twice is not ironic
Four times, actually; there was also a sequel to the original miniseries that continued the story, and in the original movie version of Annie.
But yes, "ironic" is probably not the best word. "Coincidentally," maybe, or "fittingly"?
Years ago he was on some PBS show where they fixed up an old car he owned.
It was probably a Packard; I know he owned one. A friend of mine is sort of high up in the national Packard Club, and had some interaction with him as a result. He said he was a nice guy.
Too young. Very talented, and I always liked him. RIP, Mr. Herrmann.
posted by pmurray63 at 9:49 AM on January 1, 2015
Four times, actually; there was also a sequel to the original miniseries that continued the story, and in the original movie version of Annie.
But yes, "ironic" is probably not the best word. "Coincidentally," maybe, or "fittingly"?
Years ago he was on some PBS show where they fixed up an old car he owned.
It was probably a Packard; I know he owned one. A friend of mine is sort of high up in the national Packard Club, and had some interaction with him as a result. He said he was a nice guy.
Too young. Very talented, and I always liked him. RIP, Mr. Herrmann.
posted by pmurray63 at 9:49 AM on January 1, 2015
I'm sure it's not how he would choose to be remembered, but he will always be "the guy from those Dodge commercials" to me.
posted by Chrysostom at 9:57 AM on January 1, 2015
posted by Chrysostom at 9:57 AM on January 1, 2015
Oh, ugh, what a typo. I really like *that his stepson is named Rory.
posted by minsies at 10:23 AM on January 1, 2015
posted by minsies at 10:23 AM on January 1, 2015
He was indeed one of those actors who show up everywhere once you know who he is. I first discovered him when I was a young high schooler, back in the 3-TV-channels-plus-2-more-on-UHF days. I discovered a lot of interesting things that showed up on PBS when I was channel-surfing, including The Roches, The Mikado, and, very memorably, Edward Herrmann and Jane Alexander doing Dear Liar, the play based on the letters of George Bernard Shaw and Mrs Patrick Campbell. I have always remembered it vividly and hoped to see it again someday. My early exposure to the two of them led to many moments of recognition over the years. Remember Herrmann as Goldie Hawn's golddigging husband in Overboard? He could do anything and was always wonderful.
posted by not that girl at 8:11 AM on January 2, 2015
posted by not that girl at 8:11 AM on January 2, 2015
From the obit:
Earlier this month, Herrmann filed a $14.5 million lawsuit against CohnReznick, a Manhattan-based accounting firm. He claimed negligence and malpractice by the company and its predecessors over two decades that cost him millions. The papers say Herrmann and his wife Star could owe more than $1 million in taxes, penalties and interest because tax returns filed in the past half-dozen years by CohnReznick and their personal accountant had “massive errors on nearly every line.”
. For him, his enormous talent and wonderful voice, and my hopes that his loved ones are able to recover from this terrible year.
posted by anastasiav at 10:41 PM on January 2, 2015
Earlier this month, Herrmann filed a $14.5 million lawsuit against CohnReznick, a Manhattan-based accounting firm. He claimed negligence and malpractice by the company and its predecessors over two decades that cost him millions. The papers say Herrmann and his wife Star could owe more than $1 million in taxes, penalties and interest because tax returns filed in the past half-dozen years by CohnReznick and their personal accountant had “massive errors on nearly every line.”
. For him, his enormous talent and wonderful voice, and my hopes that his loved ones are able to recover from this terrible year.
posted by anastasiav at 10:41 PM on January 2, 2015
A year with a GBM Grade 4? That's amazing. My dad had 3 months...RIP.
posted by beckybakeroo at 7:26 PM on January 3, 2015
posted by beckybakeroo at 7:26 PM on January 3, 2015
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